Arangham - Active Repertoire - Naachiyar - mystic search for the divine

ANITA RATNAM: I was terrified about this production because it meant solo work after a long break and there were a few misgivings on whether the production would work or not. There was also a lot of research that had to be done before I could work on the theme and freely explore Andal's quest for the divine. The interesting parallels between Andal and the Spanish Saint Theresa of Avila who considered herself to be the mystic bride of Christ, fascinated and inspired me to create the final movements of the choreography for this section! (Saint Theresa's statue is seen in the Vatican in a trance-like pose with her head thrown back and a hovering angel ready to pierce her with an arrow.)

Working with Revathy also was wonderful as there is so much respect and trust we have in each other and initial rehearsal was done in almost total silence!

REVATHY SANKKARAN: I hardly felt any effort to play my role in “NAACHIYAR”. Anita's expressions were so good and so touching, I felt I actually “became” her foster mother. It was a truly beautiful experience. The intensity that built up between us during performance was like a wave that carried us both away. She had tears in her eyes while performing and I was so moved too. You can see the moments captured in the photographs!

Arangham is so good to artistes who want to be genuine in their work. I really enjoy working with Anita and am looking forward to more productions in the future!